>> this is "bbc world news." >> funding of this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation, newman's own foundation, giving all profits to charity and pursuing the common good for over 30 years, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to know your business, offering specialized solutions and capital to help you meet your growth objectives. we offer expertise and tailored

solutions for small businesses and major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world news." >> this is "bbc world news america." poured, but their voices soared in celebration of the life of one great man. tens of thousands filled up the stadium at the memorial for nelson mandela. who of global power. nearly 100 world leaders flew into pay tribute, and president obama's eulogy captivated the audience. >> in the art of his life, we see a man who earned his place in history through struggle and shrewdness and persistence,

faith. >> the french president arrived in the central african republic where to french troops have been killed trying to stop the escalating violence. welcome to our viewers on public television here in america and also around the globe. it may have been pouring rain in south africa today, but that did nothing to dampen the spirits of those who came out for a massive .emorial a wide array of world leaders joined with ordinary citizens in honoring the man who has just left such a rich legacy. tonight, we have all coverage of nelson mandela's memorial, and we begin with andrew harding. >> 5:00 a.m. on a cold morning

where the dancing has already begun. they've been waiting half the night at the front of the queue. how iannot put into words feel. i'm over the moon. >> the forecast of rain has prompted some elegant designs. >> we are very fashionable. >> thank you. >> inside the world cup stadium, and moviesion songs a list -- and vuvuzelas. nelson mandela means different things to different people here, even those born after democracy arrived. >> everyone came together for one man. the fiery young activists

celebrate the militant who launched an armed struggle. but the mood here is intimate, like a family gathering. it is striking how many people here actually met the man. >> when you are in the presence of mandela, you think you are in the presence of a god, and yet, he treats you like you are the god. arrived.he famous a warm embrace for mandela's ex- wife and his widow. then come icons from africa's liberation struggle and some controversial he still in power. in all, more than 100 world leaders resident and past -- present and past.

denmark's prime minister poses with self he -- selfie some colleagues. the relaxed atmosphere extending to this historic handshake between the leaders of cuba and the united states. .andela would have approved a roar of approval for president but south africa's current president jacob zuma gets nothing but lose -- boos. also hear some of the celebrities who came to know mandela in his later years. rain at a funeral is seen as a blessing in south africa. at times, the blessing updated down, keeping parts of the stadium stubbornly empty. then come the speeches. >> win sadness and celebration combing book -- >> poetry from mandela's grandchildren.

drop --t to hear it and hear a pin drop. catches the mood best. >> precisely because he would becausee imperfection, he was so full of good humor, even mischief, despite the heavy burdens that he carried, that we love him so. >> but what to do with that love now. >> there are too many leaders who claim solidarity with madiba's struggle for freedom but do not tolerate dissent from their own people, and there are too many of us -- too many of us on the sidelines, comfortable in complacency or cynicism. .> it goes down well the crowd here, we get the

sense that the speeches from foreign dignitaries are almost beside the point. nelson mandela's actual funeral on sunday will be a small, poignant affair, so today really is the people's chance to say goodbye. >> it's a day for the people in the world today, the billions hungry,l go to feed those whose human rights are mandela was a symbol for them more than any leader. >> it has been an emotional day sendoff.amp but joyful >> it rained and rained as they said goodbye to mandela. as you have just deemed, thousands did make their way to that soccer stadium today. for one family, it brought back poignant memories of their last in 1990 when they

went to hear from nelson mandela who had recently been released from prison after 27 years. >> remembering the day they saw their hero speak. this former anc soldier and his wife were there the day after nelson mandela was released from prison 23 years ago. >> back and 1954 how as opposed to black emanation as we are too white domination. >> you say that you are sitting on this side, right? what was going through your mind at that time when you saw mandela walking into the stadium? >> when mandela was walking , is justhe stadium

pull out my pistol and shoot, feeling like crying. >> africa! africa! >> they were talking about .andela i told myself i was going to see mandela. they shouted for him. it was very nice. >> today, they joined presidents, prime ministers, and the world in paying tribute to nelson mandela, returning to the stadium where they had seen him speak all those years ago. here, soands of people

.any world leaders >> pride is one of the things they man they call madiba gave them. they came to remember the man their nation. how could they possibly forget him? >> she is right. i was in that stadium, two, in 1990 after mandela had just gotten out of prison, and it was indeed very nice. tomorrow, there will be a memorial service held for nelson mandela at the national cathedral, and among those playing the key role will be south africa's ambassador to the united states, who joined me a short time ago. you were telling me just as we were listening to that report about how you met nelson mandela

while you were in prison with him. >> i wish i was in prison with him. i was in the same prison as him in 1987. i was a political detainee. the warden that now calls him a father figure contrived to get me to get nelson mandela in the hospital, and i would not exchange what happened in those few minutes for 10 years of freedom ever, especially at a poignant moment like this. that saw then even in brief encounter, he had that charismatic quality everyone has been talking about today? >> i think it was just the fact that he knew i was there, that he knew what kinds of things i was doing in the anti-apartheid struggle, that he was concerned about the young students who were detained alongside of me, project he shared his with us and persuaded the prison authorities that on a saturday

night, we could be watching hises on his ejector -- project is simply to make prison a little bit better for the youngsters who were with us in prison. that was a big thing to look forward to every saturday. >> then, of course, he came out of ricin and did so much more for the country. you were listening to the memorial service today. do you think that captured the man who was that great leader? >> i think president obama made a very, very moving oration to thinkent mandela, and i it is because there's all this parallel in history, the parallel between the apartheid struggle and the civil rights struggle, the fact that both of them were the first presidents, and to the fact that president obama got elevated into politics through the example of nelson mandela and the anti-apartheid

struggle. how concerned are you about the future of south africa now mandela has gone and, given the reaction we got -- we saw president zuma got in the stadium today. >> in a strange way, i think all of that says south africa's future is good. this is south africa where people can feel free without fear of recriminations and be let into a stadium where their political sentiments in an election season -- i believe it to use that occasion drive an election campaign agenda. something in me actually felt that the democracy that nelson really has given us is working in south africa. >> thank you very much for

coming in. >> thanks very much to you. >> and optimistic south african ambassador there. let's get a look at other news from around the world. the eu foreign policy chief has held talks with the ukrainian president over the continuing standoff between police and antigovernment protesters in the t f. -- the capital kiev. u.s. secretary of state john kerry has urged congress not to impose new sanctions on iran. he told lawmakers the u.s. had promised no new sanctions as part of last month's interim agreement to curb iran's nuclear activities. tonight, the head of the senate banking committee said he would support john kerry's request, for now at least. today, the french president visited the central african republic or talks on stopping the escalation of violence there. last night, two french soldiers were killed in the capital. 1600 and troops are now deployed in the country to disarm militias who have been writing

since rebels seized powers -- have been writing since rebels seized power in march. the tension between the two communities is growing -- have been fighting since rebels seized power in march. deployedench army has here for a second campaign on the continent this year. they were sent here to stop this -- bands of ill organized rebels taking on each other and unprecedented intercommunal clashes. the french president made a quick stop tonight. his forces have suffered the first casualties -- two paratroopers. the wrench have made -- the french have made and unmade regimes in this country. the president has insisted this intervention is to prevent the worst from happening.

>> it is dangerous. we know that, but it is necessary if we want to avoid carnage here. african peacekeepers will not be holding out on their own anymore. the french are welcome reinforcements to forcibly disarm the list is -- a malicious -- forcibly disarm militias. the hunt is on. residents are now confined to separate camps. >> this country has had a history of rebellions and bad governance, but it has now slipped into a cycle of retaliatory religious violence. the arrival of the wrench has brought some kind of relief here, but it will not bring these communities back together any times and -- any time soon. >> we always look together. my husband was a muslim, and a

muslim neighbor helped me reach this camp when i was trying to escape the fighting last week. arethat i'm here, they taking care of me. i do not understand how we have come to this situation. >> is it too late to make sense of what is happening? many say trust and links have been broken. >> this man tells me communities will never live in harmony ever again. this country never really was a functioning state. the urgency to stop the violence is real before it is entirely torn apart. >> the growing violence in the central african republic and a huge task for those french troops. you are watching "bbc world news ." still to come, her poetry has touched people around the globe. tonight, my angelou speaks to the bbc about her friend nelson mandela -- maia angelou -- maya

speaks to the bbc. after weeks of antigovernment demonstrations, she announced that snap elections will be held in february, but her opponents claim they would appoint their own government in her place. >> the massed crowds have gone, but there are still groups of protesters camped in the vicinity of the prime minister's unconvinced by her offer of an election but not quite clear what they will do next. "we should keep a lot of people here," said this woman." "then we will definitely win." they have been asked to stay the course by their leader, but no one knows how long that course will be. >> i would not want to come back here again, said this man. "i want to finish it this time."

they are calling for the prime minister to leave office immediately, even though the election is less than two months away. she appeared after a cabinet meeting this morning to reject that option. then the pressure of the past few weeks and the hostility directed towards her family began to show. >> i'm not senseless. i have always listened to the demands of protesters. when they talk about my whole family, i think we are also type people. they don't want us to stay in thailand. are we going to live like this tackle i have backed down to the point where i do not know how to back down any farther. i'm asking for justice for myself. >> she enjoyed good press her first two years of office. that's over now. her party should still win the next election, but she made no longer lead it. nor will it settle a conflict of that at times seems beyond any solution.

>> tomorrow, representatives from the g8 major economies will get together in london not to discuss interest rates or trade policy, but he mentioned, the debilitating rain condition which is now believed to affect 36 million people around the world. one person is diagnosed with dementia every four seconds somewhere in the globe, and yet, no new treatment for the condition has been found in the last decade. our medical correspondent has more. >> robbing the mind and ravaging the brain -- never before has there been such a spotlight on dementia. pain has alzheimer's. the disease is still in its early stages. checking his fading short-term memory. his brother died of dementia, but he and his wife have no illusions about what the future holds.

dwelling toot been much on the future other than recognizing that things are not going to get better. we've got a fairly vivid impression of the state of outreach. >> dementia is an umbrella term for a range of diseases affecting the brain. by far, the most common is alzheimer's. a buildup of abnormal proteins leads to nerve cell death throughout the brain. over time, it shrinks dramatically, affecting nearly all its functions. symptoms include memory loss, mood changes, reasoning, and communication problems. drugs can't ease some symptoms, but there is no cure. in the u.k., the number of people with dementia and is set to double in the next 40 years from around 840,000 now to an estimated 1.7 million by 2050. over the same time, the global total is expected to triple from

.4,000,002 135 million the global cost of dementia is at least $600 billion a year. there are fears future demands could overwhelm healthcare services. new treatments are urgently needed. jeff is one of 200 patients testing a diabetes drug injected once a day, which lab tests suggest could slow the progression of alzheimer's. >> if we are to look at the undoing available -- at the funding available for persons with alzheimer's, it is eight times less than what we get for cancer. >> at the summit, more cash will be pledged for dementia research , though we will still be well short of that spent on cancer. the buzz word will be

collaboration on a global scale between researchers, drug companies, and governments to push for in the sid new treatments to fight dementia -- ive newoses -- elus treatments to fight dementia. >> turning now back to our top story, the massive memorial held today for nancy left -- four nelson mandela. elouier today, maya anglo spoke to the bbc from her home. >> his day is done. the news came on the wings of a wind reluctant to carry its burden. .elson mandela's day is done >> you appear to be trying to draw out universal values -- in particular, an emphasis on forgiveness. >> yes, he was able to forgive 27 years of unjust imprisonment,

to the extent that he actually invited the guards who had guarded him to his inauguration as president. say, "look at how great i am," to say, "i have completely forgiven you." that was a great gift. kind of to have that ability, you have to have courage, and in order to have courage, you have to have love. that was a great it that he gave . had it not been for his ability to forgive, the streets of south africa would be running in blood. would the man survived? could the man survived? his answer strengthened men and women around the world. >> president obama today quoted nelson mandela, describing himself as a sinner, he keeps on trying.

is it important for us not to hide to somem to kind of secular sainthood? >> it is very dangerous to elevate any human being higher highere human brain -- than a human being. young people than are discouraged from trying. they will say this is mr. king or nelson mandela or mahatma gandhi -- what's the point of me trying to be that? i'm just a normal person. >> can i ask you about your memories of the man? >> i have always been impressed with his kindness. he did not indulge rudeness or bad manners, but he was very kind and understood that people can change. will not forget you. we will not dishonor you. we will remember and be glad that you lived among us, that you taught us, and that you loved us.

>> maia angelou -- maya angelou there on the day the world paused to remember a great man. >> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding of this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation, newman's own foundation, giving all profits to charity and pursuing the common good for over 30 years, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures and help provide

capital for key strategic decisions. we offer expertise and tailored solutions in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles.

captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions ♪ songs of celebration and words >> ifill: a blessing of rain, songs of celebration and words of inspiration as world leaders joined tens of thousands for a memorial honoring nelson mandela. good evening. i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. also ahead, the push to curb risky trading on wall street. after years of debate, regulators give the green light to a rule key to financial reform. >> ifill: and crossing a contentious border: kurdish refugees flee from war-torn syria to an already unstable iraq. margaret warner reports.